All the Ugly and Wonderful Things

Wavy’s cousin Amy gets her wish: Wavy and Donal arrive at Aunt Brenda’s house for the holidays. Over Leslie’s objection, Wavy is cast as an angel in the Sunday school Christmas pageant. Amy continues to revel in Wavy’s ability to throw off everyone, from her bossy sibling to her parents to the church choir director. Wavy nearly derails the pageant by hiding the baby Jesus. The jokes end, however, when Wavy refuses to let the Sunday school teacher see the letter she has written to Kellen in a Christmas card that was supposed to contain Bible verses. Wavy runs away from Sunday school, missing the pageant but keeping the card.

Back at Amy’s, Aunt Brenda asks Wavy about the card. Amy’s “boy crazy” older sister and paternal grandmother, Gramma Jane, gleefully press Wavy on whether the card is for her boyfriend. Wavy says that it is, and they ply her for information. Bill, Amy’s father, asks his mother to stop embarrassing Wavy. However, Wavy smiles and offers a partial description of Kellen.

After Wavy’s enthusiastic expression of her love for Kellen, Brenda tells her book club and other friends what she thinks to be a cute story of innocent young romance. She does not realize Kellen is an adult until he arrives to pick up Wavy and Donal and return them to Val, at which point she refuses to let him leave with the children. She acquiesces only after talking to Val, and then grudgingly. Amy later overhears her mother saying she doesn’t know “what to do about Wavy” (83), but Amy has heard Brenda say this before and knows are were only three things that could be done. Amy’s parents always chose to “leave well enough alone” rather than take in Wavy and Donal or call Child Protective Services (83).

Kellen and Vic go to Nagadoches for Liam, picking up 20 kilos of cocaine. The deal goes badly, and Kellen ends up shooting two men. On the way back, Vic’s car breaks down, making them late. Liam explodes at Kellen, who thinks he would leave Liam altogether if it weren’t for Wavy.

When Kellen gets home and finds someone in his house, he pulls his gun, thinking someone might have tracked him. However, it’s Wavy in the kitchen, and he lashes out at her for surprising him. He tries to take her back home, but she stays, getting him to take a shower and put on the clothes she washed for him. While Kellen showers, Wavy goes to the store and comes back with food. Kellen tells her she can come to his house any time, apologizing for his bad mood. He tells her about killing the two men while she walks on his back. Wavy climbs on top of Kellen, wrapping her leg across him. Kellen falls asleep on the floor, and the next morning he signs Wavy’s registration form for school, pretending to be her father.

Sixth grade starts roughly for Wavy. Her new teacher, Mrs. Norton, fixates on Wavy, determined to make her speak and eat. At the end of the first nine weeks, Wavy receives a bad report card, primarily because she refuses to eat in front of Mrs. Norton.

When Kellen tries to speak to Mrs. Norton about the report card, Mrs. Norton recognizes him as “one of those Barfoot boys” (92). Kellen and Norton argue, Mrs. Norton insisting on discipline and respect while Kellen tries to explain Wavy’s eating habits. Kellen finally gives up, telling Mrs. Norton that it’s not school Wavy hates but Mrs. Norton herself. He apologizes to Wavy later, saying he did not intend to make things worse. Wavy values his intervention more than Mrs. Norton’s approval.

Wavy’s former teacher Lisa DeGrassi tries to stave off her grief over John Lennon’s death through a night of drinking. She meets Kellen at a biker party but still thinks he is Wavy’s father. Kellen finally explains to her who he is as he helps Lisa—now very drunk—leave the party. They go to a bar, where Kellen almost gets in a fight with a man who baits him with racial slurs. Lisa wants Kellen to kiss her, but Kellen advises her to leave Powell after she confesses that she hates the town.

The chapter shifts perspectives as Kellen describes turning down Lisa DeGrassi’s invitation to stay the night. Instead, he goes home to find Wavy waiting for him with a birthday cake. He would leave Powell himself, but he stays because of Wavy.

At the garage, Wavy admires a Barracuda Kellen restored. They take the car for a ride and then decide to go to a drag race. Another racer jokes about winning Wavy from Kellen in a race but then dismisses her as “a little young for my taste” (105). Kellen remarks that her skirt is shorter and that he can see she is growing up, but he confirms that Wavy is not yet 12. He worries that other men might be looking at Wavy, so he asks her to kiss him publicly before the race. After Kellen beats a newcomer to the track, the man becomes aggressive, eventually slapping Wavy in the face. Bystanders break up the fight, but Kellen damages the man’s car.

The perspective shifts to Wavy, who at first enjoys watching Kellen’s anger on her behalf. When they stop for gas, the police come and arrest Kellen for fighting and take Wavy to the police station. They threaten to turn her over to Child Protective Services rather than letting her leave with Kellen. No one can get in touch with Val or Liam, so Kellen leaves and returns with Liam’s girlfriend, Sandy, who pretends to be Val to get Wavy out of the station. By the time they get back to the ranch, Liam has woken up. He’s angry, but only because he could not find Sandy. He slaps Sandy but then becomes distracted when Kellen tells him about racing the Barracuda. Kellen tells Liam he will take Wavy to bed, and Liam lets them leave together. Wavy tells Kellen she had fun that night.